


Low Battery

by PiaMaybelle



Category: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Common Cold, Fever, Gen, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Protective May Parker (Spider-Man), Sick Character, Sick Peter, Sick Peter Parker, Sickfic, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-07-05
Packaged: 2019-05-25 06:21:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14970941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PiaMaybelle/pseuds/PiaMaybelle
Summary: Peter's suit loses battery during patrol while it's snowing, so he has to walk home without his heater and gets sick. Tony brings him with for a business trip so Peter's feeling sick in a hotel and at a convention. Tony eventually finds out and has no idea how to handle it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like the suit wouldn't malfunction very often, and it would be foolproof. But it can't be foolproof it it can't even turn on. So here you go.

Peter finished up webbing some robbers to the outside of the bank before starting to head home. The night was freezing, and he was surprised it was still raining. His heater was running, even though he usually liked to turn it off once he started moving around.   
The streets shone with water under the city lights. Peter had to be careful to attach his webs to the brick on buildings, because metal was so slick that they wouldn't stick at all. His suit was wet, but the heater was regulating his temperature so he didn't notice.   
"Hey, Karen?" Peter usually liked to ask questions that Karen didn't know the answers to. "Karen?"  
She didn't respond. Peter pressed a button to make sure his Mic was on, but it always was. And Karen talked him through everything, whether he liked it or not.  
"Karen." Peter noticed the flashing red low battery sign at the corner of his vision. "Oh, come on!"   
He had helped Tony program this. Different parts of his suit shut off when it reached a low enough charge to conserve energy. First, his built in music player and other non essentials turned off. Eventually, Karen no longer operated as an interactive part of the suit. Peter wasn't sure if he could still contact Tony or not, but he was sure the suit was really close to dying.   
The suit had a charge that could last a number of days, and there were extra batteries he could carry with him for long term missions. But he didn't carry them with him on patrol. He usually just charged the suit at night, but he had had a lot of late patrols that week and had forgotten to plug it in.   
Peter felt the heater shut off next. The air was freezing, but he could keep moving and be okay. He could just get home and-  
You know that feeling when you're walking on the stairs and you take a step and completely miss the stair?  
Peter had that problem. Except it wasn't a stair. He pushed the button to shoot a web and it just didn't come out. The suit had completely died.  
He hit the rooftop of a building and skidded to a stop on his side. "I'm good." He mumbled into the cement. The rain was coming down hard, and he shivered as he pushed himself to his feet. Peter could feel his side tingling as it healed. The rest of him was covered in goosebumps and the suit was clinging to his skin.   
"This sucks." Peter crawled down the wall to the street.   
His nose was starting to run from the cold, and his teeth were chattering by the time he got back to his apartment. The rain had turned to slush and the small icy flecks kept hitting his suit and melting. Peter climbed into his room shaking. What he really wanted was a hot shower, but the sound would wake May and she would want to know why he was showering after one a.m.  
He pressed the release button on his suit and tore off his soaked mask with a wet sniffle. His nose and cheeks were red from the cold, and his hair was plastered to his forehead. He was shivering even harder now that the suit was off, so he put on sweatpants and a sweatshirt.   
Peter didn't feel like doing anymore before he could sleep, but he plugged in the suit. He pulled up his hood to warm up his hair and crawled into bed.   
Peter cocooned himself into the blankets and fell asleep almost immediately.   
He couldn't quite stay asleep. His dreams kept turning strange and he would wake up only to find that his alarm hadn't gone off yet, and still had a while before it would. Peter rolled over for the millionth time and shut his eyes in hopes of getting just a little bit more sleep. Once he finally could sleep, his alarm went off.  
He still felt cold, even though he had been wrapped in blankets for hours. His head hurt and so did his throat. His nose had been running before, but now it was stubbornly blocked and the tip was a light pink.   
Peter ran a hand through his messy hair and looked himself over in the mirror. He looked a bit like a zombie.   
He got dressed, leaving the huge hoodie on from the night before. It was going to be a long day.


	2. Paying Hooky with a Billionare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's just trying to make it through school so he can sleep, but Tony has other plans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the confusion on the last chapter. This one has Tony and the next one will as well!

Peter unplugged his suit from where it was charging tucked away between his desk and the wall and shoved it into his backpack.   
When he got into the kitchen, May already had a bowl of oatmeal at his place. He sat down and took a bite.  
"Morning." Peter mumbled around the mouthful of oats.   
"Good morning." May turned around and looked him over. "Are you feeling okay? You sound like you're getting a cold."   
"I'm fine." Peter defended quickly. The last thing he needed was May keeping him home in bed over nothing. He sniffed quietly. Okay, maybe not nothing but it wasn't bad.   
"Drink your orange juice." May set a glass in front of him and ruffled his already messy hair. "Or face the consequences." May laughed and headed back toward the sink to do the dishes. Peter chugged the juice, even though it hurt his throat. He knew that If he didn't May would never let him leave.  
"Alright, I gotta go. I love you!" Peter put in one earbud and swung his backpack over one shoulder.   
"Wear your jacket! I love you, too!" May called after him. Peter eyed the jacket for a second but left it on the hook.   
"I'll be fine. I've got a sweatshirt and it's not too cold outside." Peter reached for the doorknob.   
"Peter Benjamin Parker, it is snowing outside. You're wearing a coat." May rushed out of the kitchen and blocked the doorway. She gave him the look, and Peter took the jacket off its hook and tugged it on. It was warm and he was going to be glad he had it. May kissed him on the cheek as a goodbye, but paused and frowned at him.   
"Are you sure you don't want to stay home? You feel warm. I don't want you walking in this weather if you're getting sick, and -" May and Peter had this in common: they both talked too much when they got worried about something.   
"May, Really. I'm fine. I gotta go. I'll see you later." Peter smiled reassuringly and ducked out of the apartment.   
May had been right about the jacket. The slush from the night before was steady snow and Peter was cold even with the hoodie and coat zipped. He was grateful for the train which got him out of the snow for some parts of his commute.   
Peter's head was aching. He kept spacing out to the point where his music stopped for a few minutes straight and he didn't notice at all. His nose was running nonstop and he kept having to wipe it on his sleeve, since he couldn't find tissues in his pockets. It made his nose even redder, which wasn't helping his 'not sick' argument.   
Ned was already at his locker when he got there.   
"Hey, Peter- Whoa, are you okay?" Ned immediately switched to mother hen mode, with a hand firmly planted on Peter's forehead. "Do you have a fever? Wow, it's cold outside. You're freezing. That's not good either." Peter brushed his hand away and wiped his nose on his sleeve.   
"I'm okay. Really." Peter's voice was stuffed up, and the sniffles that followed didn't help his argument.   
"You look and sound sick, so I don't really believe you." Ned was digging through his backpack. He pulled out some tissues. "Here."   
Peter waved them off, but Ned pressed them to his chest.   
"Did someone drop you in a lake again?" Ned asked. "Actually, you look way worse than you did when you got dropped in a lake."  
"Wow, thanks." Peter tried to scoff, but started coughing. "My suit ran out of battery last night. Like, full dead. No webs, no heater, no Karen." Ned's eyes went wide.   
"Whoa, not good. So you got sick?" Ned tried to feel whether Peter's neck was warm.   
"No. Ned. Stop trying to touch me." Peter playfully slapped Ned's hand. "I'm fine. Just lost some sleep, is all." He started their walk to first period.   
Peter used most if the tissues by halfway through class, so Ned leaned over.   
"You should go home if you're sick." Peter frowned and shook his head. "I'll walk you to the office."   
"Ned, I'm fine. I can sleep after today. It's Friday. I'm just going to make it through." Peter coughed into his elbow, then cleared his throat and looked up at the board.   
Peter's phone buzzed underneath the table. He had a text from Tony.   
"Happy and I are here to get you. I have a big event this weekend that I want you to come to to get you some exposure. Already talked with May. She packed your stuff and it's in the car."   
Peter looked up at Ned. "Nevermind."  
"You'll go home? Good. I'm glad you're getting the rest you need-"  
"No, Ned. Tony's here to get me. I'm going with him on business." Peter closed his notebook.  
"Peter, you have to tell him no. You're sick." Ned argued, but the teacher's phone rang. Peter put his stuff into his backpack.   
"Parker, they need you in the office. Bring your belongings." The teacher waved him out of the room, and he left a protesting Ned behind.   
Instead of the usual black sports car, Happy was driving a sleek yellow car. Tony led Peter out of the school where everyone was staring at them. The cold air hit him and he shivered in the snow.   
"I made something up about career readiness and college and they bought it and excused you. I probably could have told them we were going for ice cream and naps and they would've let me take you." Tony grinned. Peter opened the backseat of the car and climbed in. The leather was soft, and he slumped into the seat.   
It was warmer in the car, but Peter felt like he was sitting in the snowbank outside.  
"Mr. Stark? Where are we going?" Peter wiped his nose and muffled a cough into the back of his hand.  
"Oh, right! We're going to a science and technology convention in Jersey." Tony pulled up pictures on his tablet. Peter's eyes widened, but Tony frowned when he didn't launch into the expected freak out. Peter looked like a mess, but he was usually an energetic mess. "Peter? You okay? You usually talk my ear off over something like this."   
"Huh? Yeah." Peter nodded, but the movement made his head hurt. "I'm good. Just a bit tired, I guess."  
His cough kept trying to come back, and he was trying to hold it off. He rested his forehead against the cool glass of the car and eventually fell asleep.   
Peter woke up to Tony shaking his shoulder. "Kid. We're here."   
Peter lifted his head to find the car surrounded by people, and the building they were parked near was packed. It was like a mini Stark expo.   
Peter sat up with a shiver. "Huh?"  
"Let's go. Bring your stuff. Happy will take it up to your room for you." Tony gestured at Peter's backpack. He clutched it to his chest.  
They got out of the car and the cold and noise hit Peter. He stumbled after Tony into the building, among people trying to film them. If he hadn't been sure before, he was definitely feverish now. He felt so cold, even though he knew he was more than warm. They walked past a bathroom.  
"Mr. Stark? I'm gonna use the bathroom real quick." Tony nodded, recognized someone, and started a conversation. Peter ducked into a stall and pulled his suit out of his backpack. He pulled it on and then put his clothes on over it. With a press of a button, the heater was going and he relaxed into it.  
Peter used some of the toilet paper as a tissue and then swung his backpack back over his shoulder and walked back out. With the added warmth, he was feeling much better. It was like being curled up in bed.   
Happy took his bag and jacket and left for the hotel room.   
"Peter, this is Maxwell Tia. He works in the design of drones, and is currently working on a search and rescue drone." Tony introduced the man to Peter as well.   
"I've heard a lot about you. Mr. Stark seems impressed with you." Maxwell said. He was tall, and his suit was an obvious knockoff of the one Tony was wearing. Peter smiled.   
"Thank you. Nice to meet you." Peter blushed self consciously at how rough his voice sounded.   
Tony led him around the large convention for about two hours, just meeting people and getting a general idea of what work they did. Peter felt like falling over, and he had been trying to discreetly wipe his nose. He kept muffling coughs into his elbow when Tony wasn't looking.  
The idea of turning on his suit's heater had been good earlier, but now he was feeling lightheaded and he was certain that he was burning up. He was slightly grateful to Tony for being oblivious. But also, Peter was wishing he could just sleep for days.   
He barely touched his lunch, but wished he could just stay sitting in the booth. Peter almost audibly groaned when Tony offered to take him to look at prototypes.   
He was swaying on his feet when Tony pulled someone over to meet him. "Peter's excellent with robotics and chemistry." Tony pressed a hand between Peter's shoulders and then immediately pulled it back. Peter flinched as he realized it was from the suit's heat. "Excuse us for a second." He dragged Peter off to a quiet corridor.   
"Why are you so warm?" Tony was frowning deeply. Peter pulled up the sleeve if his hoodie to show his suit.   
"It's just the heater-" He was cut off by coughing. Peter ducked into his elbow to muffle it. "I'm fine."  
"Are you...cold?" Tony raised an eyebrow. Peter shrugged.   
"I was earlier. I'm fine. Did you say something about prototypes?" Peter sniffled.   
"I...no, no changing the subject on me." Tony reached out and tentatively felt Peter's forehead. Peter could tell he didn't know what he was doing at all. "If you were feeling sick, you should've told me."   
"I'm not. I'm feeling great. I'm -" Peter let out a sneeze. Tony looked extremely unconvinced.   
"Okay, you're done." Tony grabbed Peter by the shoulder and spun him towards the elevator. It took a nudge, but he got Peter walking away from the convention. "To the hotel room with you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and to everyone who commented! There will be more.


	3. What am I even supposed to do with a sick kid?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony gets Peter to the hotel room but has no idea what to do with him from there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dad! Tony. A lot of it.

Tony pressed the elevator button for their floor with a sigh. Peter quietly leaned against the wall of the elevator. He stared into the floor to avoid eye contact. Tony pulled out his phone and accessed the controls on Peter's suit.   
"Whoa, kid. That's a bit much." Tony pressed a few buttons and the heater switched off. Peter curled in on himself and shivered slightly. "Are you that cold?"  
Peter shrugged. "I'm fine. Don't -" Tony held up a hand to stop him.   
"Don't tell me you're fine. And don't tell me not to worry." Peter folded his arms over his chest and tried to tense up to stop shivering. He coughed into his elbow and cleared his throat with a wince. "See? Not fine, Peter."   
The elevator doors opened onto their floor and Tony stepped off. Peter followed him closely.   
"It's not that bad. You don't have to do any of this." Peter argued as Tony swiped the card for his room.   
"Truth is, your aunt would kill me if I didn't. But also, knowing you, someone has to forcibly stop you or else you're going to keep pushing yourself and it's going to go too far." The hotel room door shut behind Peter with a slam, and he winced at his headache. It had already been bad, but loud noises weren't helping.   
The room was huge. The bed was gigantic, but looked dwarfed by the amount of space around it. Every surface shone and every item looked expensive and breakable. Peter spent a minute looking around and couldn't help a little awe at Tony's lifestyle.   
Tony tossed Peter his duffle bag that aunt May had packed him. Despite the headache messing with his spider senses, Peter's reflexes were sharp and he caught the strap without looking.   
"You should change into something more comfortable." Tony offered when Peter just stared blankly at the bag.   
"I'm okay. We can go back downstairs if-"   
"Yeah, no. You've already given yourself a fever. I don't want to see what happens when I let you out another time." Tony pulled out his phone. "You can't argue with the suit, which is giving me a reading of 102 at the moment. Go change."   
Peter took the bag and went into the bathroom. He was a little glad at the chance to stop and rest, but he wished he didn't have to get in the way of Tony's plans to do so. He changed into sweatpants and a t-shirt, which felt like not enough but his hoodie had been used as a tissue all day so he opted for the cleaner choice.   
He passed back to the bed and flopped on top of the blankets. The bed felt like a cloud, and he sighed in satisfaction but it turned into a cough. Peter sat up and coughed deeply into his elbow. His throat and chest burned from it and he winced at the pain.   
"I'm okay." He said quickly when he saw Tony eyeing him.   
"Yeah, we have to ban you from saying that for awhile." Tony sat down in the chair next to the bed. His phone buzzed on the bedside table, but he ignored it. "Do you want to watch something?" Tony set the remote down on the edge of the bed next to Peter.   
"Uh, sure, thanks." Peter shivered and climbed under the blankets. He wrapped the comforter around himself and burrowed into it before switching through the channels.   
Tony picked up his phone and stepped into the entryway of the room and dialed a number. Peter tensed and Tony pulled the phone away from his ear.   
"Not May!" He called over his shoulder, and Peter relaxed back into the pillows with a sniffle. "I offered to have her take a vacation for the weekend while you were gone so we can't just drop you back at home." Tony turned around to face the door when whoever he was calling picked up.  
Peter flipped through some shows before settling on a Star Wars film he had seen a million times. Usually, he would be saying the lines with the characters and priding himself on behind-the-scenes knowledge. But he was tired and the familiarity of the movie was putting him to sleep.   
He could just make out Tony's phone conversation in the background over the sound.   
"What am I even supposed to do with a sick kid?" He could see Tony's back and make out his gestures. "Yeah, Happy, I got that. He's watching TV. No, I didn't medicate him. That might be a good idea. I don't know what works on him, or whether I double his dose for his metabolism or give him a half dose because he's a kid." Tony glanced over his shoulder and Peter snapped his gaze back on the television. "I don't know. I felt it earlier, he was pretty warm. The suit said 102. But he had the heater going in his suit. So that can't have helped. I'd have to have him sit here in the suit if I wanted to monitor it, but that's not comfortable." Tony turned back to facing the door. "No, I didn't bring a thermometer. I don't know! Happy-" Tony brought his voice back down from yelling.   
"I'm just worried, okay? I'm hoping he didn't patrol like this. I mean, he was barely standing when we were walking around. Okay, that sounds worse than it was. No, I don't think I need to take him to a hospital. Do I?" Tony's voice rose again with nervousness.   
Peter wanted to keep listening, but the exhaustion settling in his limbs was dragging him down into sleep.  
Peter hadn't had a nightmare in a while. They had been more frequent following the Vulture incident, but things had been less eventful since and Peter had been able to sleep easy for a little while.   
But that was the thing with Peter's problems. Just as soon as he thought everything was going to be okay, it all fell apart.   
Peter was falling. He grabbed blindly at the air around him, but couldn't stop. He pressed his web shooters and no webbing came out. The panic in his chest hurt like it was suffocating him.   
He yelled for Karen, for Tony, for someone. He was just dropping, the way he had when the Vulture had pulled him into the sky and let go. And then he felt what he had been falling to.   
Icy water rushed up around him and his muscles tensed against the cold. He was going to drown. And no one would know. This time, his suit wasn't on. Tony wouldn't know to come get him. No one was coming for him. And he was sinking. 

"Happy? I have to go." Tony ended the call and nearly dropped his phone. Peter was tossing in his bed, mumbling into his pillow. It wasn't peaceful, sleepy mumbling either. Peter sounded scared.   
"Peter. Peter, wake up." Tony shook Peter's shoulder. Peter grabbed his pillow tighter and his face screwed up. Tony had been woken up from these dreams by Pepper on multiple occasions. He knew how scary it felt, and how real it was. Peter's fever wasn't helping the dreams, either. "Peter." Tony shook Peter harder.   
Peter opened his eyes and sat up shaking. He was breathing hard and his breaths were interrupted by short coughs. "Mr. Stark?" His voice as quiet.   
"Yeah. You're okay. It's okay." Tony pulled his hand back from Peter's shoulder. "What was it this time?"  
Peter fell back against the headboard and ran a shaky hand through his hair. "It's stupid. I'm okay. Sorry."  
"I thought I banned you from telling me you were okay. It's not stupid." Tony sat down on top of the covers.   
"The suit malfunctioned again and I was falling and...I fell in the lake but the suit was turned off and you weren't coming to get me." Peter pulled his knees to his chest. "You didn't come." He buried his face in his knees. Tony frowned.  
"That's not going to happen, okay? I'm not going to let you get hurt." Tony brushed Peter's sweaty hair back from his forehead. It hurt to see Peter like this, and he wished he could fix what happened in the dream. Even if it wasn't real. "Wait, what do you mean the suit malfunctioned again? This has happened before?"   
Peter's eyes widened and he looked up. "Um, not exactly. It was my fault. You don't have to fix anything. I'm okay."   
"What? What happened? When something goes wrong with the suit, I need to know." Peter nodded and sniffled. Tony handed him a tissue from the bedside table. He took it and blew his nose before explaining.   
"The suit ran out of battery on patrol yesterday. I couldn't talk to Karen or you. The heater turned off and so did my web controls." Peter coughed. "I walked home. It's my fault, I didn't charge the suit."   
"You...walked? It was snowing." Tony frowned. He should have known something was wrong when the suit had suddenly cut offline much earlier than it ever normally did. He should have noticed something when Peter fell asleep in the car. He should have noticed something when he was dragging a kid with a fever around a convention all day. He felt like an idiot. This was all something he could have fixed and didn't.  
"I'm sorry." Peter mumbled.   
"This isn't your fault. I should have done something." Tony ran a hand through his hair.   
"No, I'm sorry I ruined the weekend. If I had just plugged in the suit this wouldn't have happened. You wouldn't have to leave your convention for me and I wouldn't be in the way." Peter stared right at Tony with his big sad puppy dog eyes. Tony swore he did it on purpose just to melt his heart but knew Peter wouldn't do that.  
"You're not in the way. I should have come to help you when the suit died." Tony sighed. "We were here for you, anyway. I'm not missing out. They're all just trying to suck up to me and they're jealous of you." He smiled. Peter let out a breathy laugh and then winced and brought a hand up to the side of his head.   
"You okay?" Tony asked as Peter rubbed his temples.  
"Yeah, sorry." Peter brought his hands back to his sides.   
"Alright, no apologizing and no telling me you're fine. What's actually going on?" Tony asked. Peter bit his lower lip.   
"Head hurts." He shifted around. "It's not bad, though. I know you get those electromagnetic headaches or whatever, and they're way worse." Peter grabbed another tissue to wipe his nose. His voice was all gravelly and blocked compared to its usual high pitch. He sounded tired, too, and was missing the energy he always had.   
"Nope. None of that. You don't get to push your problems out of the way because you think I've been through worse." Tony said. "What else?"  
"Um, I don't know. It's just a cold." Peter pulled up the covers over himself again and stretched his legs out. "My throat kind of hurts." He admitted quietly.   
"I can text Happy to get you something for it." Tony offered and reached for his phone. "He's been handling everyone at the convention but he can take a break from that." Peter shook his head.   
"That stuff doesn't work on me anymore. I'm good." He smiled. "Thanks, though."   
Tony sighed. "Sure. You should probably rest then." He stood up from the bed.  
Peter nodded, but tensed up. "Um, Mr. Stark?"  
Tony turned around. "Yeah, kid?"   
"Can you stay? It helps if someone's here. Stops the dreams." Peter looked up at Tony. "Sorry. It's stupid. Something May does. You don't have to."   
"No, I'll stay." Tony sat down next to him on top of the blankets and switched off the TV. Peter snuggled down into the blankets and rested his forehead on Tony's shoulder. Tony ran a hand through Peter's hair and he relaxed into it.   
"Thanks, Mr. Stark." Peter mumbled and shut his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading! All the comments have made me super happy!


	4. Impulse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to take so long to update! Here it is.

Tony Stark lived his life on impulse. If he felt the urge to do something, he usually did it. He just decided and that was that.   
So he wasn't too surprised when he found himself playing with Peter's hair. It was just so soft and curly.   
Peter had fallen asleep with his head resting on Tony's shoulder. His warm forehead was pressed against Tony, and his soft snores had been right in Tony's ear since he had dozed off.  
The room was quiet, and the TV was off, leaving Tony all alone with a sick Peter. Who happened to have very soft hair, as he had found.  
Tony's fingers carded through Peter's hair. He let out a quiet sigh, and Tony froze, hoping it didn't wake him up. Instead, Peter nuzzled into his shoulder and snored louder. Tony continued, brushing Peter's bangs back from his warm forehead.   
He wasn't sure how long it took, but eventually Tony slipped away into a light sleep as well. 

 

Happy Hogan didn't do kids. But if he knew someone who was even less competent at handling children, it was Tony Stark. Tony had no gauge for how to deal with any age under 18. He would give a 6 year old a Ferrari as a Christmas gift, and offer a 17 year old dinosaur chicken strips as the only possible meal option.   
So Happy was certain that nothing could be going well if Peter was sick. Based on the phone conversation he and Tony had, Tony didn't know what was going on. And he was slightly worried by how quickly Tony hung up.   
Happy swiped his copy of the room key and let the door swing open. He had an armful of grocery bags he nearly dropped when he stepped into the room. The hotel door began to swing shut agonizingly slowly.  
Peter was asleep, curled into Tony's side. He had a hand firmly gripping Tony's right arm. Tony was on top of the covers, still sitting upright, fully asleep. His left hand was resting on top of Peter's head.   
Happy set the bags on the table near the door and was reaching for his phone to take a picture - ultimate blackmail - when the door behind him slammed.   
Peter shot awake, his grip on Tony's arm tightening to a painful level. Tony frowned and woke up, clenching his jaw in pain.   
"Ow, Peter, what?" Tony pulled his hand away from Peter's hair, a flush of embarrassment spreading across his face. Tony's eyes followed Peter's. "Oh, Happy." Peter relaxed and let his hand drop from Tony's arm.   
"Hey Happy." Peter said, his voice scratchy and congested.   
"Hey, kid. You sound rough." Happy tucked away his phone. He turned to Tony. "I brought some stuff to help. I got soup, tissues, that sort of thing. Do I need to get the car to take him back to his aunt?"   
Peter tensed at that. "Don't bother May-" he squeaked before his voice broke into coughing. Tony shook his head.   
"May's out of town." Tony explained as he stood up from the bed and stretched. He reached for one of the bags. "I've got it, though. I think you might have to handle explaining to everyone that we can't make it to those events."   
"Are you sure you don't need help?" Happy raised an eyebrow. Tony nodded.   
"Thanks for this." Tony lifted the bags from the table and took them to the bedside table.   
"Thanks, Happy." Peter said from the bundle of blankets.   
"Sure. Feel better." Happy walked back to the door and left. All he could think was, "where is Tony Stark and what did Peter do with him?" Tony was not the caretaking type. In fact, Happy remembered him not even coming in to the office during flu season. Peter must have worked some evil magic on him. 

 

"Do you want soup?"   
Peter jumped at the question and grabbed the steaming to go container from Tony. He was about to just drink it when Tony also handed him a spoon.  
"I see you're doing better." Tony sat down and rummaged through the bag. Peter sniffled quietly into his soup until Tony threw a pack of tissues at him.   
Peter took one and blew his nose before setting the soup on the bedside table.   
He reached for his phone and found a series of texts from Ned.   
"Are you okay?"  
"Alright. You aren't going to answer that honestly."  
"You need to rest though. You have a fever and I know it."   
"Mr. Stark needs to know."  
"Does May know?"  
"Peter. Respond."  
Peter smiled and tapped out a quick response.   
"Sorry I was sleeping. Mr. Stark figured it out and May kind of did too before I left. I'm okay. Stop worrying." Peter reached for a tissue and muffled a congested sneeze into it. He was expecting a 'bless you' or something from Tony but didn't get one. He looked up to realize Tony was asleep again. Peter hid a small smile.   
Neither he nor Tony got enough sleep unless they were forced into it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I will be updating, so stick around. Comments are much appreciated!


End file.
